Saving the Dragons
by RhiannonSkahr
Summary: Years after Itachi and Orochimaru, everything was going wonderfully for Team Seven and all of Konoha...until strange ninja appear with a warning...ninja bearing the sigil of the dragon.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own the Dragon Ninja and everything related to the Dragon Ninja in this fic.

Several years before the Nine-Tailed Fox:

Kakashi lounged in a high tree, ignoring his teammates and sensei as they chattered around their fire and the fish that were roasting nicely. They had just successfully finished a delivery to the Sand Village, and were relaxing for a few moments.

He was still running on adrenaline. Only a few hours earlier they had fought a small group of bandits, enough to give them a little challenge.

_But not much._ Kakashi snorted. He sat up and ran a hand through his thick silver hair. _I'm going to look around._

He disappeared from the tree, knowing Arashi-sensei would know where he had gone.

As he dashed through the trees, he came upon a piece of the woods that seemed somehow different. He slid to a stop on a thick branch.

_This isn't right. It's as if these trees are…whispering to each other. I wonder what's going on?_

Suddenly his vision wavered. He couldn't keep his eyes open, and his feet slipped from the branch.

Strong arms caught him before he could hit the ground and he blacked out.

-----------

When Kakashi finally woke, the sky was darkening. His internal clock informed him it was only a few minutes since he had passed out, and he had been placed within a moment's walking distance of his camp.

_How did this happen?_ He thought back. All he could remember, before the darkness claimed him, was the sigil of a fierce dragon on a strange hitai-ate.

_I had to have dreamed it._ He decided, getting to his feet and brushing off his pants. _There are no dragon ninja. I guess I have sunstroke or something._

He sped back to camp, oblivious to the eyes that watched him.


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do own my creations, such as the Dragonlands and the Dragon ninja.

Chapter 1:

"Dracen, Jerod!" Zaynah watched in horror as the explosion ripped through the trees. Her teammates disappeared in the flames, she was forced to her knees, and a kunai was suddenly against her throat.

"Well now, poppet." A poisonous voice cooed in her ear. "It's goodbye. I've had a wonderful time!"

Zaynah stiffened as the rogue ninja pulled back her kunai to strike. A soft grunt and a gasp met her ears; she opened her eyes to see the rogue stretched on the ground, and her sister wielding her double-bladed spear, now bloodied in her twin's defense.

"Zephyr, Dracen and Jerod—"

"Are fine." A pair of strong arms swept her up and they were dashing through the thick forest. Zaynah clung to Dracen's vest as exhaustion hammered her.

"Dracen…"

"Blast it all, Zaynah, you could have died!" Zephyr snarled, worry blunting the anger in her tone as she easily kept pace with Dracen. "Using the Razors after being poisoned, it was idiotic!"

"It saved our lives." Jerod said quietly, effectively halting Zephyr's tirade. Zaynah felt Dracen's arms tighten around her and she smiled, finally succumbing to the darkness.

Before she finally passed out, she heard Dracen say softly.

"We're nearing the border of Konoha…if we can only get there in one piece…"

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Shikamaru leaned against the wall, his bored gaze scanning the expanse of trees in front of him. He sighed and folded his arms, leaning back to take a nap.

Wallguard duty was so troublesome.

Just as he was about to doze off, a loud voice shouted in his ear,

"HEY! Shikamaru!"

Shikamaru jumped and came down with a kunai pointed at the annoyance. Naruto stood grinning at him, carefully stowing his ANBU uniform in his bag. Shikamaru automatically scowled and put away his kunai.

"What are you doing here? You should be reporting to the Hokage."

"Already did!" Naruto said cheerfully, placing his fox mask in his pack. "Our squads have gone home; she kept Sasuke behind for the finer details, but he should be here any moment!"

"And why are you here?" Shikamaru lifted an eyebrow. Naruto opened his mouth to reply, when Sasuke appeared with a swirl of leaves. His own raven mask dangled from his hand (as he had yet to put it away) and he glared at Naruto.

"Have you told him yet, dobe?"

"Oi! I was about to when YOU had to go and interrupt me!" Naruto yelled, practically steaming.

Sasuke ignored him and turned his gaze on Shikamaru. "We encountered a few irritations on the road, and signs of battles. They led toward Konoha. All the wallguards are to be especially alert; since you are guarding the gate today, we thought we should inform you ourselves."

Shikamaru nodded, amazement rising in him as he once again marveled at Sasuke's transformation. Ever since Naruto had brought him back, after Orochimaru's demise, Sasuke had become more open and friendly…at least as much as his anti-social personality would allow. Of course, both Naruto and Sakura had something to do with that…

A sudden explosion had all three scanning the forest. A plume of smoke rose not a mile away. Shikamaru hit the alarm on the wall as Naruto and Sasuke checked their weapons.

"Shikamaru, once help arrives, follow us with a small group." Naruto ordered, falling easily into his role as an ANBU squad leader. "I don't want any needless death."

Shikamaru's reply was lost as a small whirlwind appeared before them. When it died, they saw the shocking sight of two silver-haired girls. The taller one with her hair pulled into a bun was carrying the second girl, who was unconscious. The girl stepped forward, but her legs gave out and she slid to the ground, carefully cradling the second girl even as her strength abandoned her.

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Zephyr blinked as darkness edged her vision and looked up. Three men wearing the symbol of Konoha ninja stood watching her in suspicion and surprise; all three were jounin. She felt her strength fading and managed to gasp out a single plea.

"Please, help us! Our teammates…"

-----------

The girl's astonishing plea trailed off as she fainted. Shikamaru quickly caught her, scanning both girls for injury.

"Chakra depletion, lacerations, the braided one has several broken ribs…" Shikamaru looked up to see Sakura, Hinata and Lee dashing toward him; Naruto and Sasuke were gone. Neji appeared beside him.

"Neji, Lee, you're with me." Shikamaru relinquished the girls to Sakura's care. "Sasuke and Naruto have already left; we have a rescue situation."

"Let's go." Neji commanded, and they were gone.

Sakura lifted both unconscious girls, her amazing strength put to good use, and headed toward the hospital as Hinata informed the tense wallguards of the situation. She then scanned the forest with pearl-grey eyes and frowned.

_Why can't I see the disturbance?_


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. However, I do own my creations, such as the Dragonlands and the Dragon ninja.

Chapter 2:

Naruto and Sasuke sped silently through the trees toward the explosions. They stopped in surprise on the edge of a sudden clearing.

A circle of rogue ninja from several different villages surrounded two young men, both rather badly battered; the rogues were not unscathed themselves, and there were bodies all over the clearing.

It was obvious, however, that the two younger men would not last against such a large group, whatever their skill level. Sasuke glanced at Naruto and smirked at the look of determination in his friend's eyes. The Uchiha heir immediately began to make hand-signs.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

-----------

Dracen's head shot up, his one eye widening as flame engulfed several of the rogues in front of him. They fell with screams of agony and confusion ran rampant; Jerod immediately took advantage of it, his hands flashing through hand signs. Fire roared into a vortex around him, and his hazel eyes gleamed gold in the light.

"Fire Style: Whirling Inferno Jutsu!"

The vortex became a tornado, ripping through the ranks of the rogues closest to him. Dracen tightened his lips, but said nothing. Despite the help that seemed to have had arrived, despite Jerod's waning chakra and his own wounds, this battle would very much depend on their strength. No one ninja would have the power to help them fight off such a large group of rogues.

Two ninja. He corrected himself, as a pair of ninja appeared from the trees. His eye widened.

"Jerod!"

His friend turned, and was similarly shocked, as were the rogues. A rogue Mist ninja snarled at the two Konoha jounin, who were standing on the edge of the clearing in stances of unconcern.

"This is none of your business!"

"On the contrary, two young ladies showed up at our gates and claimed protection for themselves and their team." The blond said cheerfully; his cheerfulness was belied by the hard look in his blue eyes.

A rogue Sand nin snorted. "As if you could defeat us all. It's only two of you; these two Dragon nins are almost dead as it--"

Before he even finished speaking, his head was rolling on the ground. The black-haired ninja stood over the Sand nin's body, wielding a katana, his eyes swirling red and black.

"Gaara should thank me for that." He remarked off-handedly, smirking coldly at the rest of the rogues.

With the recognition of the Sharingan, Dracen realized just who these two were. Suddenly, he had hope for their survival.

-----------

When the others arrived, the battle was already over. The bodies of rogue ninjas, some burned, others with the obvious markings of the Chidori and Rasengan, lay scattered around the clearing. Sasuke was collecting the various hitai-ate for the rogues' respective villages, and Naruto was tending two young men who were obviously drained and extremely exhausted.

"Yo, guys!" Naruto waved them over. "We'll report to the Hokage; get these two to the hospital ASAP. From the looks of it, they've been fighting for several hours."

The man with wild brown hair chuckled. His left eye was obscured by a black eyepatch, decorated with a silver dragon. He smirked up at them, thought his exhaustion was making him shake.

"Try several days, Naruto-san."

Neji frowned. "Days? That's impossible."

Rock Lee's eyes began to water and his smile practically blinded them as a sun rose behind him. "Such dedication! Such Beautiful Fortitude and Willingness to sacrifice yourself for the good of your Gorgeous Female Companions!"

The man ignored Lee as he continued to rant about Amazing Youth and the Strength of Mind over Body and so on. "It's been on and off; they've been tracking us and attacking ever since we left our home village. We have an urgent communication from the Ryukage."

Sasuke stared down at the strangers, his now-black eyes missing nothing, including their strange hitai-ate; a fierce dragon. "Just who are you?"

Both men grinned and the redhead answered with a snort. "We're the Dragon ninjas, duh. Didn't you hear the Sand nin before you killed him?"

Before Sasuke could retaliate, the other Dragon ninja cuffed the redhead lightly. "Shut up, Jerod. They saved our lives, and of course they don't know us. That's why we're on this blasted mission, remember?"

"I have no clue what's going on, but right now you're getting medical help." Naruto said firmly. He interrupted Lee's rant. "Lee, Shikamaru, take them to the hospital. Neji, make a round of the forest, make sure we got them all. Sasuke and I need to report to Tsunade."

The ninjas obeyed their orders with alacrity; Lee and Shikamaru scooped up the strange ninjas, ignoring their protests, and disappeared in the direction of Konoha. Neji nodded at them and leapt into the treetops, making his silent way through his rounds. When they were gone, Naruto turned to look at Sasuke.

"Are you sure about what you saw?"

"Perfectly sure."

Naruto sighed, an uncharacteristically solemn look on his face.

"Great. Tsunade is going to love this."


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. However, I do own my creations, such as the Dragonlands and the Dragon ninja.**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 3:

Tsunade, the Fifth Hokage, the best med-nin and (literally) the strongest kunoichi around, was totally speechless. She stared at two of her best ninjas with wide eyes, her mouth working, but no sound emerging. It would have been funny if the situation were not so serious.

"What did you say?" She finally managed to say, regaining a bit of composure.

"Dragon ninja." Sasuke enunciated clearly. "Here. In Konoha. Specifically, in the hospital. They were rather badly injured."

"There's no Hidden Village of Dragons." Tsunade objected, drumming her fingers anxiously on the table.

"Apparently there is." Naruto observed quietly, still in his role as squad leader. "And there's more."

Tsunade groaned and leaned back in her chair. "This had better not be something worse…"

"I can't see them."

"What?" She sounded confused and Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"During the fight I activated my Sharingan. When I looked at the Dragon nins, _I couldn't see their justsus or their moves_. It was as if my Sharingan was being blocked, and not by a jutsu. I could tell that much."

"Great." The Fifth Hokage let out an explosive sigh. "Right, as of now I am putting you two, Sakura, and Hinata in charge of them. When they have recovered sufficiently, let me know. I wish to speak with them."

Naruto gave her a foxy grin and a wink. "Sure thing, Grandma!" He disappeared with a snicker, his joker's mask firmly in place. Sasuke rolled his eyes and followed his blond friend, leaving a pensive and annoyed Tsunade glaring at the wall.

"Shizune! Get in here!"

------------

The Konoha med-nins were excellent at their job. Dracen noted with a smile. Within an hour of being admitted, all tests had been run and they were resting in soft beds. The four Dragon nins had been put in a room together, with curtains in place should they want privacy.

Jerod was leaning up against his headboard, glaring at his hospital gown and numerous IV's in annoyance. His fingers twitched toward the IV line.

"Dracen, can I please just—"

"No."

"But Dracen!"

"No, Jerod. Those are in place for a reason. Now shut up. We don't want to wake the girls." Dracen pinned the redhead with a firm look. Jerod immediately settled, a worried look on his face as he watched Dracen smooth his hand over Zaynah's forehead. Both girls were unconscious still, hooked up to several machines. Zaynah, however, was still in critical condition, while Zephyr just needed a good night's rest.

The door opened. Jerod and Dracen were on their feet in an instant, defensive postures alerting the med-nin. She smiled, unfazed by the deadly glares.

"You two should not be out of bed." She said calmly, moving toward the twins. Dracen gave a low warning growl, and she stopped. Turning amused green eyes on Dracen, she tucked her short pink hair behind her ear.

"I wouldn't try anything. I am more than capable of putting you both back in bed with my bare hands."

"What are you doing?" Jerod demanded suspiciously.

"I am giving this young lady her hourly dose of medicine." She pulled out a syringe and carefully inserted it into Zaynah's IV. "That poison was a nasty one. I'll have to repeat this for five more hours."

"I thought that brunette was our assigned nurse." Dracen eyed her; something about her seemed strange, as if she were hiding something strong behind that innocent exterior.

"Tsunade-sama has put myself and three of my friends in charge of you four, and since I am the Hokage's student, I am the one who makes sure you don't die while in our care." She stopped at the door and gave them a sweet smile. "My name is Haruno Sakura. I'll be back every hour, and the rest of my friends should be by this evening to meet you. Welcome to Konoha, gentlemen."

She left, closing the door behind her with a gentle click. Jerod blinked, then looked over at his leader.

"Did you get the feeling that she could snap us in half with her bare hands?"

Dracen nodded. "Remember, she's the student of the strongest kunoichi around. I have no doubt she's picked up a few tricks."

"Maybe we should get in bed before she comes back…"


End file.
